Facebook quickly becomes a time-consuming hobby, easily distracting you from other things you should be doing. Fortunately, the social networking site makes it easy to deactivate your account for a while and then return later. When you deactivate your Facebook profile, the profile immediately disappears from the site, along with any posts you left on friends' profiles. Upon reactivating your profile, everything is restored just as you left it, including your wall posts and profile picture.

1. Sign in to your Facebook account and click on the downward arrow in the top right corner of any Facebook page.

2. Select "Account Settings" from the drop-down menu that appears.

3. Click on the "Security" link on the left side of the page.

4. Click the blue "Deactivate your account" link at the bottom of the Security Settings menu.

5. Choose a reason for leaving from the choices listed. This is required to deactivate your account. Optionally, you may explain further in the area provided. Click "Confirm" to deactivate the account.

6. Restore your Facebook account in the future by signing in to Facebook with your username and password.

About the Author

Lara Webster has been writing professionally since 2009. Her work has been featured on Relationships in the Raw, The Nursery Book, Spark Trust and several travel-related websites. Webster holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Master of Arts in mass communication and media studies, both from San Diego State University.